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Possible toxin in baby bottles raises concerns
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Photos by Jason Redmond / Star staff Wendi Melideo of Thousand Oaks feeds her 7-month-old son Hudson at their home. Concerns about plastic baby bottles are increasing the demand for glass bottles, below, and fueling a lawsuit seeking class-action status.
Borghetti
STORY TOOLS 
More from County NewsWendi Melideo has regularly used plastic baby bottles to feed her 7-month-old son, Hudson, but new information about the possibility of plastic bottles leaching toxins has her worried.
"If I had known there was any chance that chemicals could get into the bottles, I would have switched to glass, of course," the 38-year-old Thousand Oaks resident said.
Melideo isn't alone.
Fueled by a confluence of bad publicity surrounding the plastics used in baby bottles, the demand for glass bottles is going through the roof. In recent weeks, glass bottles have been a top-selling baby product on Amazon.com.
The alarm was raised in a report "Toxic Baby Bottles" by the Environment California Research and Policy Center, a citizen-based environmental advocacy organization. That report was followed by a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles seeking class-action status and legislative activity.
Environment California's report was released in February and said bisphenol A, a hormone-disrupting chemical that mimics the sex hormone estrogen, leaches from clear, plastic baby bottles into liquids.
It noted that scientists have linked exposure to very low doses of bisphenol A to cancers, impaired immune function, early onset of puberty, obesity, diabetes and hyperactivity.
But scientists disagree that the chemical poses a health risks to humans. At the American Chemistry Council in Arlington, Va., Steve Hentges said Environment California is perpetuating a "scare story."
'Scare story' propogated
"It's definitely a scare story that's being propagated by Environment California presumably to promote legislation to ban products that have been shown safe for use around the world," he said. He cited a study released in January from the European Food Safety Authority.
"They provided a very reassuring message on the safety of bisphenol A," he said. "And that's just the most recent evaluation of that type."
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission also conducted a health-risk study that determined that children were not at risk from plastic toys.
But the U.S. Centers for Disease Control has reported that 95 percent of Americans have detectable levels of bisphenol A in their bodies.
Kim Borghetti, owner of Green for Baby, is not taking any chances. A few months ago, she became aware of Environment California's new research and decided to stock her Thousand Oaks store with glass baby bottles.
"I wasn't even aware they were still making glass baby bottles, but when the discussion came up, I investigated it and was able to find a company that was still making glass baby bottles," Borghetti said. "So consequently, we now sell them in our store."
She hasn't had too many buyers, yet.
But Melideo could be her next customer.
"I'm going to check out that store. ..," she said after hearing it had bottles in stock, "and probably buy glass bottles."
After Environment California's report came out, a lawsuit was filed in March in Los Angeles County Superior Court seeking class action status. The suit names the manufacturers and retailers who've sold the bottles.
The plaintiffs' lawyer, Jon Eardley, believes that the case will eventually add claimants from the Ventura County area who purchased plastic bottles at Vons, Ralphs or Gelson's.
"I really think the stores need to get these products off their shelves," Eardley said. "I'm a father of two and this is very frightening stuff."
The lawsuit claims the manufacturers and retailers have known for some time that they were exposing the public to a serious risk of harm, and deliberately ignoring the studies because they would hurt their business interests.
Legislation to ban certain chemicals from children's products is also pending. Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, D-San Francisco, introduced Assembly Bill 1108 to keep bisphenol A and phthalates out of toys and baby care products.
Last summer, San Francisco became the first jurisdiction in the country to ban bisphenol A and phthalates in toys and certain child care products. Maryland and New York are onsidering similar legislation.
Phthalates are chemicals that increase the flexibility and prolong the durability of plastics. They are used in hundreds of products, including vinyl flooring, adhesives, plastic bags, food packaging, inflatable recreational toys and children's toys.
Chemical industry criticized
Frederick vom Saal, a biology professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia, believes that these chemicals have adverse effects on humans at extremely low doses. For many years, he has been calling for change and criticizing the chemical industry's defensive response to studies showing the potential harmful effects of bisphenol A.
He said the European study Hentges cited was outsourced to scientists tied to corporations with financial stakes in the chemicals.
He hopes that the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles will bring attention to the dangers that his studies have found.
"From my perspective, it's depressing that we have to rely on civil litigation," he said. "That the public has to go to court to protect itself because the federal regulatory agencies paid for with our tax dollars are not doing it that's unacceptable."
Posted by Jacksprat on May 17, 2007 at 10:06 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Gee maybe we will get back to the way it was when our childern were little. Glass bottles and cloth Diapers. I think that the youngest may have had plactic bottles but I can remember the hours spent with the stiralizer boiling the glass bottles. Before the days of the dish washer. Maybe we should all go back to those days. Look at how much less would end in the land fill if we went back to cloth diapers which we washed out every day.
Posted by byteme on May 17, 2007 at 10:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)
or just breast feed! Natures milk
Posted by Ventura22 on May 17, 2007 at 11:09 a.m. (Suggest removal)
As with all plastic bottles, they should be kept out of the sun and away from excessive heat sources. They shouldn't be heated in a microwave either; heat the milk in a glass container, then pour it in the bottle. Easy solution and you still enjoy the safety benefits of using a plastic bottle vs. glass for your children. UV rays and heat break-down the plastic and will cause it to degrade; releasing the substances into the milk, or any other liquids.
Posted by smartmama on May 17, 2007 at 11:21 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The plastic bottles at issue are polycarbonate bottles - some baby bottle manufacturers do not use polycarbonate bottles. For example, Medela bottles are not polycarbonate. And, to answer dgreen's question - Playtex inserts are a different type of plastic altogether.
Posted by GuardandolaLuna on May 17, 2007 at 1:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Playtex plastic inserts are not great either - IMO. They may like other plastics have PVC. So if you get a a bottle that is plastic not polycarbonate, it is best to look for something PVC Free. The First Years has products that are PVC free as does Nuby. We use a Nuby PVC-free bottle with a silicon sippy nipple from Nuby. I also use the Nuby siicone sippy top on a Evenflo glass bottle. Also there is Kleen Kanteen sippy (stainless steel) and Thermos just came out with a new one called Foog that will be out in July. I am just trying to phase out plastic as much as I can in my house. I won't take a chance with my kids:)
Posted by Comments on May 17, 2007 at 1:58 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I breastfed for 18+ months so I fortunately don't have to worry about the bottles. However, my son does use plastic sippy cups. Does anyone know if these carry the same risks?
Posted by wdwinder1 on May 17, 2007 at 6:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
So why is her kid still suckin on the plastic bottle? And she's only 'probably' going to buy glass. But I imagine she will definitley joind the class for the law suit. rolls eyes
Posted by busymommy on May 18, 2007 at 9:36 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Okay I have a very healthy one year old who was NEVER breastfed. I am so tired of people saying that I did something wrong to my child. Breastfeeding is a choice and I chose not to. Formula is a safe alternative to all children. Dgreen I feel that your comments are ignorant. How dare you comment on someones choice to breastfeed or not.
Posted by TO_Resident on May 18, 2007 at 10:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Sorry, Nikki, but children were meant to be breastfed. It's better for baby AND mother. If you have doubts, you should check out 101 reasons to breastfeed your child. It's complete with references.
Formula is certainly not a safe alternative for ALL children like you say. It's much safer than cow's milk, but it's a second best choice. I'm grateful for formula - got me and my baby through a few tight spots the first few days when my milk didn't come in right away and she was risking dehydration - but that's what formula is really there for. It's a lifesaver when mamma just can't breastfeed for medical reasons or her supply just isn't enough.
However, the point of the article here is not breastfeeding. It's BOTTLE SAFETY. Is there really a danger? I would like to know. I'm a nursing mother, but I rely heavily on plastic bottles. I have to pump every day at work while my child is being cared for and I use a lot of Medela bottles , but I use other bottles as well. I would like to see this question answered definitively.
Posted by surfchik805 on May 18, 2007 at 10:41 a.m. (Suggest removal)
You people are rediculous and not completely informed if you think that every single woman can breastfeed. For your information i have a two month old and tried my hardest to breastfeed and it only lasted a week. The child has a huge part in breastfeeding also and he would not latch on anymore. I was in tears for not being able to do it for longer. Also my sister is unable to breastfeed for long because she has an inverted nipple so stop acting like we are bad mothers for not being able to.
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